


Staring into the Eyes of Death

by SilentLord



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Blood, Dark Comedy, Death, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Gen, Guns, Hospitalization, Humor, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, Smut, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-14 00:00:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29287191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentLord/pseuds/SilentLord
Summary: "If I wasn't mistaken, you've already simulated this before, haven't you?" Your smile perked up in response, lips ghosting the man's carotid artery."Many, many times." You willingly admitted "I do have a 'vivid imagination' after all.In which you lead a life you hadn't expected too, Alexander finds someone to love and love him back, and you make some drastically life-changing decisions, for yourself and everyone around you.
Relationships: Bangalore | Anita Williams/Lifeline | Ajay Che, Bangalore | Anita Williams/Reader, Bloodhound (Apex Legends)/Reader, Bloodhound/Mirage | Elliott Witt, Caustic Alexander Nox/Fuse Walter Fitzroy/Reader, Caustic | Alexander Nox/Reader, Crypto | Park Tae Joon/Makoa Gibraltar, Crypto | Park Tae Joon/Reader, Fuse | Walter Fitzroy/Reader, Horizon | Mary Somers/Reader, Lifeline | Ajay Che/Reader, Loba Andrade/Reader, Loba Andrade/Revenant, Makoa Gibraltar/Reader, Mirage | Elliott Witt/Reader, Octane | Octavio Silva/Pathfinder, Octane | Octavio Silva/Reader, Pathfinder (Apex Legends)/Reader, Rampart | Ramya Parekh/Reader, Revenant (Apex Legends)/Reader, Wattson | Natalie Paquette/Reader, Wattson | Natalie Paquette/Wraith | Renee Blasey, Wraith | Renee Blasey/Reader
Comments: 8
Kudos: 25





	1. One Small Step, One Giant Leap

**Author's Note:**

> (Y/n) (L/n) = Your name  
> (Y/A) = Your Age  
> (Y/H) = Your Height  
> (Y/Al) = Your allergies (if any, otherwise ignore)  
> (S/C) = Skin Color  
> (HA/C) = Hair Color  
> (H/C) = Home Country  
> Text in '' is text chat.

**2733, March 19th, Eden, 2100 hours**

  
Even in the summer of a metropolitan desert planet like Eden there are nipping breezes in the dark of night, for some it's considered a blessing but, for a hired gun scoping out their target such as yourself, it has a complicated relationship. You sat next to the darkened airstrip of an abandoned airport here in Eden, no traceable electronic systems or witnesses to make reports. You fiddled with the drawstrings of your ebony coloured hoodie with a duffle bag tucked between your legs, you could see the edges of an envelope in your peripheral of the bag and you read over it's contents once more for clarification.   
Inside the envelope was an official invitation to some sort of gathering called 'The Apex Games' with a hard-cover red and white card, inscribed on the back of the card were GPS coordinates and a time to arrive at; 2200 hours, so either they were testing you or they were genuinely late, either way you were starting to get impatient. 

You contemplated getting up and walking away when an intrusive beacon of light shone down upon you blinding you within seconds. You were quick to shield your now dysfunctional eyeballs as the faint purr of a carrier craft engine creep up on you from above, after a few moments the light flicked off and the carrier craft hovered just over the runway. In the peripheral of your now dysfunctional eyes you noticed the silhouette of a pole shear through the air and land just in front of you, anchoring into the ground and tightening the coil of a zipline. You stared rather confused at the contraption until the line tugged in accommodation of new weight, you looked up the other end to see a MRVN service robot darting towards you rather with considerable speed. However, he jumped off the line a few meters before you and stuck the landing with practiced grace. The icon on his monitor morphing into a warm smile icon as he jogged towards you waving his arms in the air.

"Greetings, newest friend, I'm Marvin, but my best friends call me Pathfinder. You must be..." he trailed off, the monitor changing to a pondering icon, then into an acknowledged icon "you must be the new legend, Skywalker, congrats on your victory." He took both of your hands in one of his and shook them sporadically "are you excited to be fighting alongside us? I can't wait to fight with/against you." He let your hands go afterwards and you shook the pain out before gathering your belongings and pulling out your phone. You opened the Notepad on your phone and typed out a response for Marvin to see.

'Hello Marvin, yes I am Skywalker, though please call me (Y/n), and thank you for the praise. Ironically enough I born both deaf and mute so I can't properly convey my thoughts across.' You explained before showing him your hearing aids behind your hair. You watched his expression morph to shock then into an apologetic look.

"My apologies (Y/n), how unfortunate." The expression soon morphed into a faint smile "but on the positive side, that just makes your hard-earned victory even more praise-worthy. Now I already know we were an hour behind schedule, so let's the rest of the introductions for when you settle into your new home. He walked over to the zipline and held out an open arm for you, "you'll have to hold into me since you don't have a thruster pack yet, I promise you'll be safe." You tucked your belongings in front of you and clambered up the robot's frame, watching him clip the rope into a carabiner. "Are you ready friend?" You nodded excitedly, slightly tensed up as he turned on the thruster pack and sent you both skyward, you watched the ground beneath shrink within seconds before the lift suddenly stopped, you clamped onto Marvin's frame to balance yourself. "It's okay now friend, you can let go now" you did as requested, albeit slowly and hesitantly. Once your feet touched the metallic frame of the ship's floor did Marvin guide you to a nearby seat, buckled you in, packaged your belongings overhead, and retrieved a breathing apparatus from somewhere above you.

"Considering you have a raspatory system, you'll need to wear this for the time-being." He tucked the mask over your face as you quizzically typed out your thoughts.

'Breathing apparatus? Are fast are we expecting to go?'

"Well this is a spaceship (Y/n), we'll be going warp speed I'd imagine." His explanation left you in shock, propelling you into typing it into words.

'WARP SPEED?! ARE WE GOING UOTER SPAPSE? NOT ACROS EDEN!!!!' The robot laughed in response and sat beside you to strap himself in, you felt your accelerated breathing fanning across the inside of your mask as Marvin's metallic hand took hold of yours.

"We'll be okay friend, we've all done this plenty of times. It'll take us merely minutes to get to Solace, that's where the game's are held, so just back and relax while we prepare for take-off." His tone certainly didn't convey the same sincerity of his words, which didn't do much to put you at ease, but you had nowhere else to go from here. You willed yourself to relax as the ship initiated lift off. 

Aside from the occasional change in velocity Marvin hadn't lied about the safety of the trip, which was relieving to say the least, and within minutes of the trip the aircraft had slowed down and halted mid air, the rear door opened with a screeching hiss and the seatbelts unbuckled automatically. Marvin helped to unpack your luggage before scooping you into his arms, you felt the tinge of blush on your cheeks at the intimacy of the hold but, your feelings were thrown astray when he charged out of the door at full speed without a zipline or a parachute, straight down towards the concrete helipad and you would have most definitely screamed if you had the voice to. You clenched your eyes shut against his neck in anticipation of death until you felt something strange. Your body felt like it was being enveloped by some strange force field breaking the velocity. You slowly opened to the view of a vermillion coloured, hexagonal patterned, dome igniting the night sky. You looked over to see the dome ripple from your weight breaking the surface and you watched the dome stretch from one end of the horizon to the other. 

Your myriad of emotions snapped back into focus as Marvin's thruster pack kicked in to finish your descent, the robot's frame clinked onto the helipad before setting you down again. You felt your legs liquify beneath you and struggled to stand straight. "It's often a rough first time for everyone, I'm sure you'll get used to it soon." He explained showing you a sympathy emoji. Once you were stable enough to stand, you went back to typing.

'I'm sure I WON'T get used to it. EVER.' Marvin gave you back the duffle bag and walked alongside you through the hangar and through towards a colosseum-scaled building, roughly 15 floors tall x 40 rooms wide, with the Apex Games logo brandished over the main door, leaving you to assume this was HQ for what seemed like the rest of your days. The reinforced glass doors opened quietly as your robotic friend took strides towards the reception desk.   
"Hello Angelica, looking lovely this evening. I have the newest addition to our family right HERE!" He emphasized the last word with an excited arm across your shoulder, pulling you towards the circuitry and metallic chassis in a friendly mannerism. The brunette haired lady smiled at the robot before holding out what appeared to be a temperature gun but pointed it at your eyes, your vision was invaded by numerous red lasers as she seemingly recorded your information through the device. 

"(Y/n) (L/n), (Y/A), (Y/H), (Y/Al)-" you zoned out when you realize she was listing off your personal information, fear and panic flaring up like an ivy rash, your worst fear came to fruition when she squinted towards a certain section of info "born on Planet-" 

*SLAM!*

You smacked both hands, palm down, onto the desktop loud enough to snap the concentration off her face and spook Marvin slightly. The both of them staring you down rather concerned until you pointed at the monitor and made a 'NO' gesture, hoping such simplicity would convey the message of privacy. She cleared her throat quietly before holding her hand out expectantly, "I-I need the invitational card, please." You searched through the bag and handed over the envelope, she retrieved a bobby pin from her desk and inserted the pin into the top of the card, the hard-back cover chirped to life and slid off like the case of a calculator. Inside the card was a thin, holographic, blank banner card, she fished through another drawer and pulled out a larger casing frame, she slid the banner card inside the case and clicked it shut, you listened closer as you heard the faint rhythm of locks clicking into place, after a moment she slid the banner towards you. "Welcome to the Apex Games, Skywalker."

"Alright my friend! Let's go meet the others in the Mess Hall, they're having a banquet tonight to celebrate the preseason finisher." Marvin explained leading away with a hand on your back, you looked over your shoulder to see Angelica eyeing you rather suspiciously and returned the glare. "(Y/n), (Y/n)-" Marvin called out to you before shaking your arm slowly, enough to bring you back, the concerned emoji reillumined the monitor. You gestured for him to continue, "I was just saying that you'll be meeting the others shortly so just try not to be nervous, some of them seem scary and trust me they are scarier than that." Being blunt seemed to be his forte for explanations, not entirely a bad quality but not particularly helpful right now. 

As the elevator dinged to a halt and doors opened, you were greeted to the sight of an enclosed, yet illuminated, hallway leading to a pair of closed doors on the other side. Every step you took towards them was another leap your heart made into your throat, too late to back out and too scared look away, you stood in agonizingly slow silence as the robot swung open the door...

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	2. Names and Faces Should Never Mix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What seemed like a gargantuan waste of time and effort for the Toxic Trapper turned out to be an intriguing experience, all the most test subjects for the games, lucky him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y/n) (L/n) = Your name  
> (Y/A) = Your Age  
> (Y/H) = Your Height  
> (Y/Al) = Your allergies (if any, otherwise ignore)  
> (S/C) = Skin Color  
> (HA/C) = Hair Color  
> (H/C) = Home Country  
> Text in '' is text chat.

Caustic POV

  
"And he was like "Witt, I know you can't tap that whole keg.' and I was all *pssh* keg shmeg." Even on opposite ends of the room I could hear the shrilling hyena named Elliot Witt ranting about his antics. It was becoming increasingly difficult to analyze the recordings of this month's games and the variables of my experiments with the incessant chattering, then there was the problem of the newest addition.

"AJAY! Reckon I can down more booze than this clown?" Octavio Silva, more commonly known as 'Octane' by his cultish followers, had been the personification of LOUD ever since he landed here this morning, the day been great until that damned dropship arrived. But there was some merit to his lunacy, turns out he is the son and heir to Silva Pharmaceuticals, one of the most well known pharmaceutical medicines companies in the outlands, so as much as his mere presence induces me with headaches I believe he'll be more...tolerable than most.   
"What?! You're all stick and bones, thinking you can drink more than me is presposter-prespr-ah...pres...is dumb." I could genuinely feel my braincells begging for freedom from this farce, and I was more than willing to grant such a mercy. I packed up the loose sheets of paper and holo-pad to take back to the comfort and serenity of my lab and made to the door before it swung outwards and almost slammed into me. Pathfinder stood on the opposite side of the door with an excited smiling face on his display monitor. Even as I could feel the exhaustion setting in from, yet another, inconvenience the robot's presence had silenced the room for a few blissful seconds until he started his rant.

"Good evening friends, look what I picked up from Eden this evening." He pushed forward this unfamiliar (S/C) person, perspiring and trembling slightly in place, they sheepishly raised a hand to wave around everyone "this is (Y/n) (L/n), a.k.a _Skywalker_ , they'll be joining us come next season." Another small-time, lucky chance winner, from some smaller game. I genuinely felt a vein in my head snap at the thought of another egotistical recruit throwing their weight around the place "and if you're wondering why I'm doing the introductions instead, it's because (Y/n) is both mute and hearing impaired."

The explanation sent waves through the other legends as they pondered on the idea of a critically disabled fighter, needless to say I was also confused, but not as angered by such a revelation as I had expected. My moment of reprieve was cut short when I felt Witt brush past me wearing a confident smirk.

"Skywalker huh? Like those nerdy sci-fi films from Eden-actually now that makes since since...Pathy found you there- but still you couldn't come up with a better name kiddo?" He reached out to punch your shoulder lightly and I could see something snap behind your eyes, something unforeseen, the moment his hand was close enough you clenched onto his his wrist with a surprising level of strength, twisted it behind him, kick his knee out from under him, wrapped both of your hands around his head and-

*CRACK!* 

His body went limp but disappeared in a flashy cascade of light before hitting the ground. It happened so suddenly and so quickly I almost couldn't register the speed of your reaction, almost. After a few moments of silence, everyone seemed to register the same thing, just with an unnecessarily more audible reaction.

"DAYUM! Save da murder for the ring why don't cha?" Lifeline called out as she and Bangalore made their way over to you.

"That was good form soldier, quick execution too, you've been training in Black-Ops before this?" She asked most certainly visualizing the body's positioning if it were the real Mirage laying there. Your now visibly vibrating hands darted to your pocket and grabbed your phone, most likely to translate your thoughts, the struggle for words concluded after a few seconds and I looked over their shoulder's to read also.

'I just saw it in a movie and some video games, don't think I'd even get into military with my 'conditions'.' I looked over to see you pointing to the hearing aids before locking eyes with me. Looking back on those last few seconds it was hard to believe these now insecure and unfocused iris' held the same passion for murder, hard enough that I could feel a faint sense of pride welling up at the reality of the situation. That brief moment of personal weakness was noted, but quickly silenced, as the real Mirage made his way over, albeit hesitantly, and you were instantly apologizing for your transgression.

"N-Nah, it's fine, well it isn't fine-fine, but it's what I deserve for making fun of your dorky- I-I mean quirky codename." He was make an even bigger fool of himself with every passing second, his saving grace came in the form of Gibraltar hoisting you into the air by the waist, lower body hung limp, as the behemoth of a man bellowed with laughter.

"No way did I expect a cute little thing like you to be a weapon, bruddah" he dropped you back down and slammed the open palm of his hand against your back hard enough to knock you forward a few centimeters "the name's Makoa Gibraltar, people around here just go with Gibraltar." Next up was the combat medic and soldier standing before you, this time Lifeline extending her arm across your shoulders.

"Ajay Che call me Lifeline, but not because I just save lives, 'member dat." Bangalore stood at attention, feet together and saluting.

"Sergeant 1st Class Anita Williams, Bangalore around here, hope you don't slow us down like every FNG." Her military slang seemed to be indecipherable, which was a blessing in disguise. Before she had a chance to clarify, you were visibly spooked when a raven landed on your head and a hand on your shoulder, your eyes quickly following the hand of the Technological Tracker themselves.

"I am Blothhundr, you can call me Bloodhound felagi fighter, it will be an honor to fight alongside when the time arrives." The raven chirped in greet also before darting back to Bloodhound's side. Mirage ran a free hand through your hair but still seemed rather hesitant as you made eye-contact.

"People call me Mirage, name's Elliot and I hope you'll remember it well, and you my dear can call me, anytime~" There was a simultaneous groan of displeasure from everyone, myself included, before he received a swift jab to the ribs from a passing blue streak that stopped before you.

"My name is Wraith, I look forward to working with you greenie." She barely got her handshake in before the daredevil sheared through the crowd putting you in headlock.

"Hey, Hey noobie from another boonies, name's Octane swing by for a cold one amigo." He was quick to try and tug you away from the crowd until you looked over towards me again, the realization settled in both of us as you shook off the over excited showman and walked over with an extended hand. Normally I wouldn't make the time or effort to introduce myself to anyone, and I almost did the same here, but something...xenomorphic about you just wouldn't leave me in peace, an intriguing feeling to say the least. So I returned the gesture with a gloved hand.

"Caustic, glad to be of acquaintance." Short and concise as all introductions should've been.

"Well then friends, I hope you saved some food for our newest addition, and I hope you fit right in friend." Path concluded pushing you towards the assortments of food, but you nearly got whiplashed when Octane tugged you out the door. Stumbling over words like 'party' and 'wasted' which should never be within the same sentence. Lifeline sighed to herself rubbing the bridge of her nose begrudgingly.

"I'll make sure that bastard Silva doesn't kill 'em before the interviews." She jogged down the same direction of the kidnapper, and I finally found a break to leave the room as Lifeline called for the elevator. Her stop was was almost instantaneous since the mess hall was only one up from dorms, but I had to ride to the top of the building to arrive at the laboratory. Even as I recorded the field results of the games, the pen held in my hands felt uncomfortable like mesh of my skin had settled for feeling a certain texture through the material of my gloves. The warmth of your disproportionate hand holding my own had it feeling slightly numbed, maybe because it was the same murder weapon from before, maybe because I held you in particular interest, whatever the case was, I was quick to try and wash the feeling away in the kitchen basin and put on a fresh pot of coffee, a feeble attempt to distract myself from wavering thoughts...

(Y/n) POV  
"COME ON AMO! Drink up, we've got a whole carton of rum to get through!" Octane cheered jogging into the room with a 24 box of rum, Ajay sitting next to you sipping on a cheap beer while you played with her D.O.C Drone, the sentient machinery hovering around you with playful chirps.

"You'll do no such thing tonight Silva, you two have interviews tomorrow regarding your Gameplay for next season." You weren't sure if it was the alcohol or the endorphins talking, but you really like listening to how smooth her accent was, Jamaican, if you remembered it right. Aside from Ajay's voice another interesting sensation was the feeling in your hands from Caustic's gloves, you swore you could still feel the rubbery texture every time you rubbed your fingers together, which you seemed to be doing for a while now. 

"Interviews? You mean I have to sit there and listen while these bozos talk my ear off, all I need is run fast, hit fast, win fast." He affirmed each step with a hand clap while Ajay took his drinks away, much to his dismay.  
"Those 'bozos' are our way of keeping the game's fair for competitors, quit your whining before I shove this box where ya sun don't shine." You started giggling at the idea of this pair throwing down, quickly being reduced to a giggling mess in general, this shit was definitely kicking in. "Look what 'cha done, ya got the poor thing wasted." The world around you started spinnng and flipping like a car wheel and your head felt heavier than usual, Ajay was quick to scoop you onto D.O.C to balance you better and guided you away from the booze, the two of them arguing distantly inside the room, you looked down to see your fingers still extending and reclining against each other before Ajay took hold of them and lead you down the hall, stopping a few doors down to what you assumed was your room. 

She opened the door for you and settled you down into something stiff, yet equally soft, before sitting beside you, running a hand over your temple gently and softly, you felt your eyelids start to get heavier and the last thing you'd remember thinking about, was how warm Caustic's hands would feel without the gloves....

**To Be Continued...**


	3. Setting Up to Shut Them Down Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a day of settling in with the other Legends, the Game's have already provided your first challenge, finger's crossed it won't be the last one either.  
> Edit: 12/2/21 - Decided to change the ending of this chapter to relay a different story line further in.

The morning after you arrived could accurately be described as 'Hell on Earth' as the hangover left your head feeling like a freshly cooked thermite grenade. You struggled to adjust your vision around the barren room while limiting movement to the essential muscles only, you looked around to find some variation of a clock but just resorted to the trusty phone in dire times.

6:45 a.m. That would be the official time of death for your systems. You tucked the phone away and waddled over to the bathroom, blaring lights quickly dismissed with a flick of the switch and you looked over to see a pair of aviators and a bottle of pills attached to a note on the basin. You struggled to read the blurring scribbles of ink but managed to make out it was from Ajay, you vaguely remember seeing her last night and mentioning something about an interview...but that's future (Y/n's) problem. You slipped on the shaders and downed two pills with water before making your way up for breakfast, maybe no one else was up yet and you could recover in peace.

You clambered into the elevator and made your quick ascent for some sustenance, shuffling through the double doors of the mess hall when you noticed people already sitting at the larger table; Bloodhound and Gibraltar? You were seriously struggling to remember much from last night, let alone people's names. The pair were quick to notice you standing there awkwardly and Gibraltar waved you over.

"You alright bruddah? Octane gave you a lashing huh?" Even with the man considerately whispering, the sliver of distance between you both coupled with the headache made it feel like he was yelling at you still. You winced in pain before nodding, hands on temples running smooth circles over your sinuses. You sat with the pair, but came to regret that decision as Bloodhound's raven starting cawing excitedly, nauseating pain searing through you.

"Hush Artur, our felagi is not in peak form right now." They were quick to silence the raven's chatter but it was a moment too late as the nausea became too much. You ran for the sink in desperation but failed to keep it all down before making to your destination, you spent a good minute emptying what little you had in your guts, teary-eyed and left with a burning throat as you heaved for air.

"You know-" a husky voice echoed in the sensitive husk of your cranium as you peered over your shoulder, to your surprise you could make out the shape of Caustic through the water-works, observing the trail of destruction you left with a look of disgust in his eyes, certainly not your best moment to impress "normal people would consult medical assistance BEFORE engaging in frivolous drinking." He knelt beside you and pushed your waist aside without remorse as he fetched disinfectant and towelettes from underneath the sink "I expect you'll be cleaning up after yourself?" Completely rhetorical. you knew that much, but you still amused the man's suspicions with a nod. He made no further comment as he started brewing a pot of coffee, meticulous in his measurements of coffee and water. 

You could feel a twinge of embarrassment as you scrubbed over the flooring, you hadn't noticed it before but Bloodhound had started to help wiping up what they could while Gibraltar handed you both trash bags for the biological waste. The job was done considerably quicker with the help and Makoa even showed you how the disposal systems work from the kitchen, once the job was done you put back everything Caustic gave you in roughly the same area but left you something extra; a plate of dry toast and a scrap of notepad paper underneath the plate.

_'The interviews aren't held until 2 P.M. consume the bread for carbohydrates and electrolytes and return to your quarters for rest, I'm not telling you how the interviews are designed but I wish you an eventful time,_   
_Caustic.'_

You were left somewhat shocked by such an action, a minute ago he looked like he'd kill you for making a mess but, now you just figured it was his own way of caring. You did as per instructed and went back to your room to sleep, making sure to set an alarm, and keeping your hearing aids on, in case you get too comfortable. 

**Later that Day**

You stirred awake to the sounds of your alarm, the feeling of a weight lifted from your skull and your stomach unlikely to detonate like before was welcomed wholeheartedly. You did not to, however, make the situation worse by thinking you were completely cured so you stayed light on your feet. You went back to the cafeteria to see if Caustic was around to thank for the remedy meal but when you walked in you couldn't find him anywhere, that minorly sucked, but seeing Octane with his head slumped on the table next to Ajay quietly sipping a drink was something you made sure to engrave into your eyeballs. You typed out your witty response before sitting opposite the pair.

'How the mighty have fallen.' Ajay read it over and scoffed in agreement gently rubbing the speed demon's shoulder in comfort. The man in question stirred awake and flashed you a set of devil horns in greeting. 'How you holding up big man?'

"I've been better..." his usually hyperactive tone reduced to a mere whisper, yet you could still hear the faint smile in his words. Whatever moment of silence he wished to have was shattered when Mirage walked in sitting next to you, slinging his arm over your shoulders.

"How's it going noobies, ready for the big ol' interviews?" Octane just groaned in response with Ajay silently gesturing him to lower his tone. You simply nodded in response when Elliot looked over expectantly. He gave you a firm clap on the arm before grabbing a piece of paper from somewhere and had one of his 'clones', that's what you thought they were anyway, grab a pen for him. "Me and Caustic have already had our interviews since we've been here for a while, and I thought I would be a gracious host and let you in on the process- no thanks needed, I do take bribes though." He took a moment to flash you an innocent wink before continuing "the process is handled by the Commissioner and a team of high-tech specialists, they'll ask you some questions about your experience in the field and any class style you wish to showcase. I like to think that 'the only limit is your imagination' but we'll see about that. After that they'll run through some simulations of your abilities to work out any final adjustments, bing bang boom, you're done, and you my friends are most certainly welcome." He fist-bumped the clone before it dissipated. You read over the note briefly before passing to Silva, he merely push it aside and stretched out his arms and legs before jumping to his feet.

"You can spare me the boring chatter, I already have a plan in mind. Can't speak for everyone right?" He over at you and you flipped him off before replying.

'Bold of you to assume such.' A quiet wave of intrigue left the crowd, sparks of suspense left to linger when the was opened again, this time it was a man you hadn't seen yesterday; grey hair, tanned skin and smoke-grey eyes. Whoever this man was, his presence in the room silenced Ajay and left the three of us confused. You nudged Elliot softly and the man simply nodded, must be the commissioner.

"Octavio Silva and (Y/n) (L/n), I need you to come with me." Not a word more before he turned away, rather particular about it he seemed. You looked over to Octane who shrugged in agreement and away you both went, chasing the heels of the mystery man as he called for the elevator, your small group piling in without a word. We dropped down to floor 8, and from what you could see so far from the opening elevator; this was the gymnasium, the floor covering the entire 40 floors of the building's width. The far back wall was lined with the high-tech specialists Elliot mentioned prior, further down the other end was a running track and an obstacle course about half the size of the room. The leading man walked out of the elevator and forward a few steps before turning to face us, stone cold in expression. "My name is Kuban Blisk, I'm the Commissioner of the Apex Games and the Leader of the Apex Predators, the two of you have been specially contracted by the Game's board of Directors to be make special appearances during the games as well as future legends to come. But before we can establish the food chain with the other competitors, we need to see what you're each made of-" he extended his arm to the courses for us "any volunteers?"

"OO! ME! PICK ME, PICK ME I'M SO BORED!" Octane's enthusiasm was running on full volume right now, you reckon it went even higher when Blisk looked over to scientists, who gave the all clear, and let the beast loose. You watched the gears and swivels in his bionic legs tick as he took to the running track first, probably weren't going to see him anytime soon.

"That kid surely is a beast." Blisk murmured aloud, a scoff leaving his lips as his eyes followed the maniac "I know about 10'000 marines who'd rather die than take that track at all" he turned back to you with a serious look on his face "but it gives us some...alone time to discuss something." You REALLY didn't like he phrased that, let alone the implication of the words themselves. He took a few steps towards, close enough to lean into your ear to whisper with a firm hand clenching your shoulder to anchor you in place "Angelica showed me your file....needless to say it's put me in a tricky spot, knowing you and I are from the same planet, I mean." Your gut became heavy with panic, finer hairs standing on edge as he spoke "now you needn't panic, so long as no-one finds out the truth I can help you, just don't go poking around in situations that'll get you noticed, yeah?" You were quick to nod in agreement, hoping to keep that Locker down with Davey Jones. You looked around to see if anyone was watching and noticed Octane rounding the last turn of the track.

You tapped Blisk in alarm and he stepped away as calmly as he arrived with Silva coming to a halt before you both, not as exhausted as you both expected. "Okay chief, I've played your game, so what now?" Blisk pointed to the scientists who were scrambling together like the worker bee's they are.

"Go talk to them about any equipment you may need, the Game's will cater to your any need so don't hold back, your rep. depends on it." Octane gave a quick, two-finger salute before sprinting away, "righto Skywalker you're up." He started walking towards the obstacle but you stopped him quickly to type out a response,  
'I forgot something in my room, trust me it's important.' You pointed back to the elevator and flashed two fingers, signaling a two minute timer. Blisk gave you the neutral face of displeasure, but let you go anyway. You ran back into the elevator then back to your room to scrounge through your duffle bag, there wasn't much inventory available but you grabbed the necessities; a military green/brown coloured metallic crate and a small rose coloured velvet bag. You gave the bag a quick shake and noticed it was lighter than last time, had to have a refill before the games then. You held the box under arm and sped-walked back to the elevator. As the doors closed for the 8th floor you fiddled with the 4-digit rotary lock, cracking the code just as the elevator opened.

Blisk gave you a confused glare as you checked the time, back in 90 seconds, and started jogging to the obstacle course. "Dare I ask what you have?" He was already beside you and eyeing the suspicious items in your hands, "I suppose nobody told you that we don't allow weapons in the living quarters, did they?" You stopped dead in your tracks, a sheepish smile slowly forming on your face, Blisk simply sighed and dismissed it casually "I'm pretty most of the staff and legends keep firearms on them anyway, just be sure to register that into the system, capiche?" You saluted the man in return and your response was met with a slightly more affirming scoff, but there was nothing more to be said as he shoved a thruster pack into your arms from thin-air.

"This is a Jump Kit, basically your main form of mobility in the Outlands; it has an in-built carabiner hook and three 1200 mega-watt thrusters on the tailbone, you hook up the carabiner to a zipline-" he stopped to point at a large yellow rope leading to the peak of the shooting range "and the system should register the maneuver and activate the thrusters, the thrusters will also activate when you skydive, but I'll show you that at the end, for now however, get ready for your interview." This man was just brimming with positive energy today. You just shook off the negativity and took your place on the starting mat, hoping you wouldn't die while doing this...

**To Be Continued...**


	4. Setting Up to Shut Them Down Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's crunch time for the newest addition to the roster, do they stand a chance of passing or is their career over before the starting line?
> 
> A/N: Due to constructive criticism from splitskip; I'll be implementing proper Sign Language in normal dialogue instead of phone texting from now on.

Lifeline POV  
It's been 20 minutes since Silva and (Y/n) began their interviews, so far everyone else, 'cept Caustic, was in the cafeteria for lunch, the seven of us split between two smaller tables with Mirage, Bloodhound and myself to ourselves.

"I have to say I did everything I could to help them." Elliot explained, fiddling with his spoon, "like I knew we'd all have different trials to face but I said the essential stuff."

"Yuh make it sound like you doomed them." I joked shuffling closer to him "Silva's a freak, ain't nothin' gonna romp with him-"

"And (Y/n?)" Bloodhound asked stroking Artur's neck feathers "what of them?" I honestly didn't know what to say, none of us did.

"They'll be alright." Anita was the first to respond "for all the trembling and awkwardness that kid wears, there's a soldier in those eyes, hell one of us even."

"She's right-" Renee took a sip of her drink before continuing "and if (Y/n) doesn't succeed here, we'll help them find the right path."

"Glad you're all so confident" Mirage murmured "suppose we'll just wait and see, right?" There was a collective nod among us, the silence we shared was suddenly broken when my phone rang, looking down at the Caller ID, I braced myself for the worse.

"What good Silva?" 

"WOOOOHOOOOOOOO!" The phone picked up the wind resistance interference, causing a wind tunnel against my ear even as I pulled the phone away "AJAY, YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT I GOT MY HANDS ON FOR THE GAMES?!"

"I'm sure I don't even wanna know."   
"augh, don't be like that chica, don't be a buzzkill. Listen, listen I got.... A FREAKING JUMP-PAD!!!" 

"A what now? Jump-pad?" I looked around to see the spreading confusion of the others.

"I KNOW RIGHT?! Oh, also Dr. Coldhearted Caustic is here to help up my speed game."

"Caustic's there? Silva yuh sure that's a good idea?"

"It's fine, it's fine, he's said that I'm 'certainly an interesting variable' and 'I'm looking forward to working you further, Mr. Silva.'" Each of his quotes was emphasized with a mockingly playful accent and I swore I could hear someone clearing their throat "uh sorry amigo, forgot you were there-" this time it was Silva who cleared his throat, awkwardly at that, "so listen Ajay, I've got the all clear but (Y/n's) yet to go and it's about to start and TRUST me, you'll want to see this. Does the cafeteria have a TV with transmission track?" I looked around to see one hanging on the wall opposite to us, I walked over to look and saw the track he meant.

"All good."

"Get a cable and connect your phone to it, quickly, it's about to start." I lowered the phone from my ear to address the others.

"Does anyone have a transmitter cable, USB type C?"

"Right here!" Mirage was quick to pass one up "never know when you might need it." I plugged in the phone to the T.V. and turned it on, the same time Octane started a video call. I clicked on the accept to see him plugging in his phone to camera monitor.

"Okay-" the volume and the surround sound had amplified his voice tremendously "'what you're seeing here is the camera feed of the gymnasium, and this-" he flicked through the channels until he stopped on an overhead view of a 20ft long x 10ft high mountain shooting range, and there you were in the corner of the screen, building some kind of sniper rifle "is our pride and joy."

"Hey speedy-" Anita called out while stepping up beside me "zoom in on (Y/n) real quick would you?" After a second the camera angle changed it's focus on you, there we noticed a black spinal cord stitched into the fabric "Ajay cut the line real quick." I was confused at that point, but by genuine seriousness on her face it was justified, so I did. "That's a Sentinel ESR Sniper Rifle haven't seen one of those used since the end of the IMC war."

"So then (Y/n) prefers snipers then?" Pathfinder asked with an intrigued emoji.

"It's not just any sniper rifle, it's capable of shooting through multiple targets in a single shot and boasts a high projectile speed, Pathfinder you said you found (Y/n) on Eden, right?"   
"Yes ma'am." The robot nodded.  
"Then it make's sense, Eden became one of many scrap heaps for the IMC war memorabilia. If (Y/n) found a way to rebuild something like the Sentinel "if..." then they could rebuild an entire armory themselves." 

"So is that the peak or the valley here?" Makoa asked from behind.

"Who can say, but we just need (Y/n) to be on our side if anything happens." She took a moment to compose herself before giving the all clear to unmute, just in time to see (Y/n) extending the Bi-Pod and proning in wait. Let the countdown begin.

**(Y/n) POV**

"On your mark, rain lead cadet." Blisk gave the order raising a starting pistol overhead, you could feel the tendons in your legs start to freeze up in tension, and you weren't about to have that, so you did what you did best; imagine. You closed your eyes to think, scenes of explosives and mud filling the skies, stenches of blood and gunpowder invading your nostrils, all enough to get your heart racing. You looked over, gave Blisk his signal, and then-

**BANG!**

The walls of the shooting range opened with projectors whirring to life, the lights flickered bright orange and took shape as unarmed dummies, different from Mirages yet similar in concept, and started sprint up the hill towards you. You leant into the stock and aimed down to line up a shot. You pulled the trigger and watched the hologram shatter into thousands of cublets, only to instantly be replaced with another; pulled the lever, aimed the shot, downed another. The process went on for a while, burning through three magazine's before Blisk clapped his hands together twice in succession.

"So far, so good. Now, let's see how you deal being under fire." You gulped back some air before the next wave began, arming the dummies with weapons ranging from P2020s to R-301 carbine rifles, definitely not good. The dummies were first to fire back and you roll away to avoid a P20 round to the forehead, despite the jitters running through your arms you were quick to retake a kneeling position to fight back, taking a head and a few torso's from some more targets before taking your first rounds of damage.

100 HP < 82 HP

You fought back harder, taking less time to worry about trajectory and focus on general direction, hitting less shots than before, but hitting them still. By the time the wave ended, you had burned through seven magazines and more HP.

82 HP < 43 HP

"Your panic is just food for the enemy to eat, and they will refuse to starve to death." Blisk chided before clapping again you looked over your shoulder to the velvet bag and made the decision to use it this round, lest you wanted a game-over real quick. The dummies rained lead on your position again, you fought back calmer than before but it wasn't long till things looked desperate,

43 HP < 10 HP

You reached into the velvet bag and fished out a vibrant green Hop-Up in the shape of a coin; game time. You attached the Hop-Up to the Sentinel's frame and watched as the coin phased into the gun, exhaling the same vibrant green aura as you lined up the last shot-

**BANG!**

The shot connected to the head of the furthest dummy possible and in a miraculous event; the bullet ricocheted off and into the nape of another dummy, and again into the hip of another, dismantling three in one-shot, and because the first kill was a headshot, the ammo in your magazine was refunded letting you shoot from full, you repeated the process until the 10-second timer ran out and the chip burned out, leaving you with a smoking gun frame. Just as the last dummy standing was aiming it's RE-45 at you, Blisk shot it in the head and twice more in the body with his own revolver to end the simulation.

"Well, fuck me kiddo, you might just have a legend in you yet." You slumped into the crash mat holding you up, arms and neck in seething pain as Blisk zip-lined up towards you "on your feet soldier, last thing you need to take care of then you can have your beauty sleep." You gave the man a thumbs up in agreement and took his hand to help up. "To activate the Jump Kit's thruster, you need to be at least 100ft in the air but we modified this one for training exercises, simply take a diving start and jump forward, once you think the ground is close enough, lean back and it'll take of the rest." He demonstrated his orders perfectly , and albeit with hesitance, you did also, landing with a skidding halt. 

He took you over to the research team and you both watched as they scrambled to pile together their collected data. After a brief moment of craziness, one scientist, assuming leadership, showed you the notes.

"*ahem* after watching and analyzing your simulation we've gather the equipment and style we believe you'll work best with." He gave you the pile of papers to read over;

**Name: (Y/n) Skywalker (needs changing) (L/n)**   
**Title: Spotter Sniper**   
**Recon Legend**   
**Passive: Sharpshooter**   
**Reduces ADS timing and recoil while Increasing Sniper Ammo capacity and headshot damage w/Snipers.**   
**Tactical: Tracing Bullets**   
**Reloads special laced bullets that track marked enemies positions for 3-seconds.**   
**Ultimate: Lucky Shot**   
**Equips a unique Hop-Up capable of ricocheting off certain surfaces and reloading ammo on successful downs.**

**(Further Research and Development Required)**

To say these notes were disgusting was an understatement, but so was just saying you loved every word of it. You disagreed with the fact(s) of a name change and giving them your coin pouch, enough so to give them a piece of your mind, but just as you grabbed your phone Blisk reached out to stop you.

"A personal suggestion from me; brush up on sign language, you'll need it for more effective communication in the games." You audibly sighed through your nose before flashing a 'yes sir' in Sign. You turned back to the scientists with your hands raised.

"Why would I need to change my name? Or better yet, what to?" The squabble of scientists murmured among themselves before facing you again,

"honestly, we thought you had an idea for it, but we'll have one for you before the game's start?" The fact he made it sound like a question was even more annoying, you through your arms in the air and reluctantly gave them the pouch holding your coins. They took it with glee to analyze while you turned to Blisk.  
"If I find out those are being used for other people's purposes; I'm killing those scientists and you, understood?" The man chuckled and slung an arm over your shoulders before leading you to the elevator.

"HEY AMO!" Octane called out sprinting towards you and deadlifted you into the air, knocking the oxygen from your lungs momentarily "THAT! WAS! AMAZING! HOW'D YOU DO IT HUH?" You struggled to respond while getting your lungs to work.

"Easy cadet, they'll be plenty of time to discuss those issues with the wind-down from the season, in the mean time keep up the hard work and keep yourselves in top shape; a slow soldier is a dead soldier, understood?"

"YES SIR!" You both responded with a salute and he sent you away for the day. The elevator ride back up to 12th floor was a draining one since you were coming down from your adrenaline high and still recovering from Octane's winding. The double doors opened and Ajay was the first to pin you both in headlocks while laughing. 

"Yuh bloody crazy in there (Y/n)! How's flicking shots off walls any more fair than our stuff huh?" She spoke with a playful tone while shaking you around, Gibraltar managed to pry you from her grip only to lock you in bear hug and you swore you would die from asphyxiation at this rate.

"She's right bruddah, you'll be a mighty beast to wrangle come next season!" He dropped you on your feet playfully and slapped you forward into Bloodhound, who was comfortable enough just resting a hand on your shoulder. 

"It'll be an honor to fight alongside you in the ring AND an honor to compete for Apex Recon." Everyone else was comfortable with just congratulating your success with claps and cheers, enthusiastic ones from Pathfinder, but Octane was trying to nab everyone's attention from you.

"Uh, hello? What about me baby?! I passed also!" Everyone who could laugh did so at his expense, but you looked around to see Caustic wasn't around, Anita seemed to register your confusion as she pulled you out from the mosh pit around Octane.

"He did catch your simulation FYI, I saw him watching the last quarter while refilling his coffee, if you want to find him head up to floor 15 on the double he makes it a point to avoid being caught by passerby's' such as us."

"Thanks Anita, be right back." you darted for the elevator and went up as instructed, the door's opened in time to see the man of interest leaving from a lab door and made eye contact. "Hello doctor!"

"So you've chosen to use Sign Language, forgive me for believing you were inept of such a task." Wow, okay then. 

  
"I just wanted to say thank you for the toast earlier and just wanted to know what you thought of my simulation. Anita said she saw you, just to be clear."

"Well firstly, your gratitude is acknowledged, secondly I did catch the last quarter of the simulation and I was...moderately more surprised than I expected to be. However-" his tone became darker as he stepped towards you, into your space bubble, "if that makes you believe that you and I have any chance of being equals; cast away such a delusion. You are just like the others to me; insects waiting to be observed, so that is what I shall do. Now, if you'll excuse me I have places to be." He brushed past into the elevator and was quick to shut you out, leaving you alone on the floor with your thoughts. 

His response was nothing short of bitter and defensive, and as much as it hurt you to believe he could be so...cold, there was only one thought bouncing off the walls of your brain as you eyed down the elevator doors he was just behind;

"Who hurt you?"

**To Be Continued...**


End file.
